Collectors are refusing to take bins due to non-recyclable items being placed inside

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Bin collectors in Farnham have been accused of behaving like "teams of little Hitlers" following a crackdown on improperly filled recycling bins.

Dozens of residents took to social media last week to complain that their blue wheelie bins were left full of waste by collectors "trying to make a point" over the presence of what were often single non-recyclable items.

In more than one case, litter left on top of a recycling bin by a passer-by was enough to cause it to be ignored by bin collectors, forcing residents to wait two weeks for another collection, according to complaints.

Tracy Porter said on Facebook: “I am so angry about this.

“I live opposite a shop and some kind person, not wanting to litter the area, put their crisp packet in the top of my recycling bin, and for that I have to be penalised.

“They would not empty the bin. It’s not my fault, not even my rubbish. What is the place coming to?”

Another resident, Peter Smith, said he had encountered the same problem after bin collectors found a piece of cellophane paper.

“Why not take that little bit off and take the rest,” he said.

Waverley Borough Council defended its contractors, however, pointing out they cannot remove non-recyclable items as there would be "nowhere suitable" to leave them.

A spokesman said: “To prevent a whole truck of materials ending up in landfill, undoing the good work of a majority of residents in Waverley who are recycling correctly, the council enforces the non-collection of contaminated recycling bins.

“All collectors working for Waverley’s contractor have stickers to place on bins which detail why it has not been collected and remind residents what should and should not be in the blue bin.”

For households generating a lot of waste, Waverley advised placing overflowing recyclable waste in cardboard boxes alongside the blue wheelie bins, to which Teresa Johnstone responded: “We live in England.

"Will they bother to pick up rain-sodden boxes which have disintegrated when they can’t even lift a crisp packet from the bin in the first place?

“I very much doubt it.”

The online discussion was not completely one-sided, with some residents posting messages of support for the council’s actions and questioning the complainants’ commitment to recycling.

Zoe Tudor said: “I don’t think it’s the recycling collectors’ job to sort through each bin – as if their job isn’t hard work enough.”

One resident revealed she had successfully persuaded the council to come back and empty her bin before the next collection date by claiming they had missed her the previous week, but not mentioning that this was because she had non-recyclable waste.